Closure latch assembly



Aug. 3, 1968 N. R. FRIEDMAN 3,397,001

CLOSURE LATCH ASSEMBLY Filed Sept. 28, 1966 Fig.3

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United States Patent 3,397,001 CLOSURE LATCH ASSEMBLY Nathan R. Friedman, 12327 High Meadow, Dallas, Tex. 75234 Continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 369,076, May 21, 1964. This application Sept. 28, 1966, Ser. .No. 587,940 J 1 Claim. (Cl. 292-87) This application is a continuation-in-part of my copending application-Sen No. 369,076, filed May 21 1964, now abandoned.

This invention relates to a novel and useful closure latch and, more specifically to a closure latch designed primarily for the purpose of keeping small children out of various drawers or cabinets around the home, and particularly from removing the contents of such cabinets and/or drawers.

The closure latch is designed so that it can be easily installed on almost all existing cabinet doors or, drawers. Numerous means such as screw fasteners and bonding agents may be utilized for securing the drawer latch to a drawer or cabinet door and the drawer latch is designed in such a manner that it is completely out of sight when installed and the associated drawer or door is closed. Accordingly, the external appearance of any piece of fumiture to which the latch of the instant invention is secured will not be altered.

The main object of this invention is to provide a drawer latch including means for preventing the drawer or cabinet door and the like from being opened more than an inch or two.

Another object of this invention, in accordance with the immediately preceding object, is to provide a latch assembly constructed in a manner whereby it may be readily released from a position preventing movement of a drawer to the full open position merely by inserting the fingers of one hand into the slightly opened drawer and depressing a portion of the door latch.

A still further object of this invention is to provide a drawer latch constructed in a manner whereby it may be readily secured to substantially all types of drawers and cabinet doors.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a drawer latch whose operation may be readily understood by substantially all adults in order that an adult opening a drawer equipped with the drawer latch of the instant invention may readily appreciate how the latch may be released so that the drawer may be opened to the full open position.

A final object of this invention to be specifically enumerated herein is to provide a drawer latch in accordance with the preceding objects, which will conform to conventional forms of manufacture, be of simple construction and easy to use so as to provide a device that will be economically feasible, long-lasting and relatively trouble-free in operation.

In accordance with this invention, a detent arrangement for a drawer or the like is provided which permits the drawer to be free to open for a few inches then a stop is engaged which prevents further outward movement of the drawer until the detent is pressed down to free the detent from the stop. This operation is simple and readily apparent to an adult, but will prevent a small child from opening the drawer. An important feature of the invention is the construction of the detent as a simple one-piece device, having an S-shaped configuration in one embodiment, the detent being composed of a flexible material which permits deflection but yet is firm enough to hold the drawer against movement by a child. Also, the facing 3,397,001 Patented Aug. 13, 1968 parts of the detent and stop are serrated to provide more positive action.

FIGURE 1 is a fragmentary view of a receptacle having a drawer opening formed therein in which a drawer is slidingly disposed, the drawer and receptacle being provided with coacting portions of the drawer latch of the instant invention;

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical sectiona1 view taken substantially upon the plane indicated by the section line 22 of FIGURE 1;

. FIGURE 3 is a perspective view similar to that of FIGURE 2 but showing the drawer in a fully closed position;

FIGURE 4 is a perspective view of the drawer latch illustrated in FIGURES 1-3.

Referring now more specifically to the drawings, the numeral 10 generally designates a receptacle having a drawer opening 12 formed therein. A drawer assembly generally referred to by the reference numeral 14 is provided and is slidingly received within the opening 12 and includes a front wall or closure member 16 whose outer peripheral edge portions are adapted to abut the outer surfaces of the receptacle disposed about the opening 12 for defining the limit of movement of the drawer 14 to the closed position.

The receptacle 10 includes a top panel 18 and it may be seen that the closure latch of the instant invention generally referred to by the reference numeral 20 includes stop means 22 which is secured to a depending transverse brace 24 supported from the top 18.

The stop means includes a mounting base portion 26 secured to the transverse brace 24 by means of suitable fasteners 28 and a depending stop lug 30 defining a rearwardly facing abutment face 32.

The closure latch 20' also includes a latch arm 34 including a base portion 36 which is apertured and secured to the rear face 38 of the front wall 16 by means of suitable fasteners 40. The end of the latch arm 34 remote from the mounting base 36 includes an upstanding latching lug 42, having an upright forward face 44 and a rearward and downwardly inclined cam surface 46. In addition, it may 'be seen that the front face 48 of the. stop lug 30 curves rearwardly and downwardly and also defines a camsurface.

The forward face 44 of the latch arm 34 is preferably serrated, having horizontal V-shaped grooves which engage similar grooves in the abutment face 32 of the stop lug 30.

The latching arm 34 is constructed of stiff but resilient material and includes a reversely curving portion 50 which is designed to hex under downward pressure such as that applied to the free end portion of the arm 34 by the finger '52 so as to enable the rear end of the latching arm 34 and the latching lug 42 supported therefrom to swing downwardly to the position illustrated in phantom lines in FIGURE 2 of the drawings.

It may further be seen from FIGURE 2 of the drawings that when the latching arm 34 is in the normal position illustrated in solid lines that the abutting engagement of the front and rear faces 32 and 34 of the lugs 42 and 30 prevent movement of the drawer 14 to the full open position. In fact, it is to be noted that the distance between the rear :face 38 of the front wall 16 and the outer surfaces of the receptacle 10 defining the opening 12 is less than three inches whereby only limited access to the interior of the drawer 14 may be gained until such time as the rear end of the latching arm 34 is depressed as shown in FIGURE 2 of the drawings.

Should the rear end of the latching arm 34 be depressed and the drawer 14 moved to the full open position, the engagement of the cam surfaces 46 and 48, when the drawer 14 is again moved toward the closed position, will cause the free rearward end of the latching arm 34 to be depressed downwardly so as to pass the upstanding latching lug 42 beneath the stop lug 30.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modification and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention as claimed.

What is claimed is:

1. A latch assembly for use with a receptacle member having an access opening, a closure member, and means for supporting the closure member for movement along a predetermined path toward and away from said receptacle on the exterior thereof, said latch assembly releasable preventing more than minimum movement of said closure member from a closed position toward a fully opened position, said latch assembly comprising:

(a) a stop member and a latch member (b) said stop member being a unitary structure comprising:

(1) a -flat base portion,

(2) an abutment portion depending from said base portion,

(3) said abutment portion having a first and second face, each being similarly inclined at different acute angles with respect to said base portion,

(4) the planes of said first and second faces intersecting the plane of said base portion along parallel r lines,

(c) said latch member being a unitary structure including:

(1) a flat base portion and a latching lug connected by an elongated arm of resistant material,

(2) said arm being inclined with respect to said base,

(3) said latching lug having first and second faces inclined toward said base.

(d) the angles of inclination being such that when the base of said stop member is connected to the receptacle and the base of the latch member is connected to the closure member with the base of the stop member normal to the base of the latching member and the first face of said stop abutment portion facing into said enclosure and the arm of said latch member extending toward said receptacle and registered for engagement of the latching lug with said abutment portion as said closure member is moved into closing relationship with said receptacle member, the first face of said abutment portion is substantially parallel to the first face of the latching lug and the second face of said abutment portion is similarly inclined as the second face of said latching lug,

(c) said first face of said latching lug being registered for engagement with the first face of said abutment portion when the closure member is moved from the closed position a partially open position, and

(f) the second face of the latching lug being engageable with the second face of the abutment portion upon movement of the closure member toward the closed position from its fully open position for camming the latching lug to a position in which it passes said stop means.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,003,389 9/1911 Winter 292-262 2,203,876 6/1940 Peterson 292128 X 2,097,480 11/1937 Visser 312--333 X 2,548,533 4/1951 Hendricks 312-348 X 2,731,321 1/1956 Thompson 3l2348 MARVIN A. CHAMPION, Primary Examiner.

J. R. MOSES, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A LATCH ASSEMBLY FOR USE WITH A RECEPTACLE MEMBER HAVING AN ACCESS OPENING, A CLOSURE MEMBER, AND MEANS FOR SUPPORTING THE CLOSURE MEMBER FOR MOVEMENT ALONG A PREDETERMINED PATH TOWARD AND AWAY FROM SAID RECEPTACLE ON THE EXTERIOR THEREOF, SAID LATCH ASSEMBLY RELEASABLE PREVENTING MORE THAN MINIMUM MOVEMENT OF SAID CLOSURE MEMBER FROM A CLOSED POSITION TOWARD A FULLY OPENED POSITION, SAID LATCH ASSEMBLY COMPRISING: (A) A STOP MEMBER AND A LATCH MEMBER (B) SAID STOP MEMBER BEING A UNITARY STRUCTURE COMPRISING: (1) A FLAT BASE PORTION, (2) AN ABUTMENT PORTION DEPENDING FROM SAID BASE PORTION, (3) SAID ABUTMENT PORTION HAVING A FIRST AND SECOND FACE, EACH BEING SIMILARLY INCLINED AT DIFFERENT ACUTE ANGLES WITH RESPECT TO SAID BASE PORTION, (4) THE PLANES OF SAID FIRST AND SECOND FACES INTERSECTING THE PLANE OF SAID BASE PORTION ALONG PARALLEL LINES, (C) SAID LATCH MEMBER BEING A UNITARY STRUCTURE INCLUDING: (1) A FLAT BASE PORTION AND A LATCHING LUG CONNECTED BY AN AN ELONGATED ARM OF RESISTANT MATERIAL, (2) SAID ARM BEING INCLINED WITH RESPECT TO SAID BASE, (3) SAID LATCHING LUG HAVING FIRST AND SECOND FACES INCLINED TOWARDS SAID BASE. (D) THE ANGLES OF INCLINATION BEING SUCH THAT WHEN THE BASE OF SAID STOP MEMBER IS CONNECTED TO THE RECEPTACLE AND THE BASE OF THE LATCH MEMBER IS CONNECTED TO THE CLOSURE MEMBER WITH THE BASE OF THE STOP MEMBER NORMAL TO THE BASE OF THE LATCHING MEMBER AND THE FIRST FACE OF SAID STOP ABUTMENT PORTION FACING INTO SAID CLOSURE AND THE ARM OF SAID LATCH MEMBER EXTENDING TOWARDS SAID RECEPTACLE AND REGISTERED FOR ENGAGEMENT OF THE LATCHING LUG WITH SAID ABUTMENT PORTION AS SAID CLOSURE MEMBER IS MOVED INTO CLOSING RELATIONSHIP WITH SAID RECEPTACLE MEMBER, THE FIRST FACE OF SAID ABUTMENT PORTION IS SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL TO THE FIRST FACE OF THE LATCHING LUG AND THE SECOND FACE OF SAID ABUTMENT PORTION IS SIMILARLY INCLINED AS THE SECOND FACE OF SAID LATCHING LUG, (E) SAID FIRST FACE OF SAID LATCHING LUG BEING REGISTERED FOR ENGAGEMENT WITH THE FIRST FACE OF SAID ABUTMENT PORTION WHEN THE CLOSURE MEMBER IS MOVED FROM THE CLOSED POSITION A PARTIALLY OPEN POSITION, AND (F) THE SECOND FACE OF THE LATCHING LUG BEING ENGAGEABLE WITH THE SECOND FACE OF THE ABUTMENT PORTION UPON MOVEMENT OF THE CLOSURE MEMBER TOWARD THE CLOSED POSITION FROM ITS FULLY OPEN POSITION FOR CAMMINING THE LATCHING LUG TO A POSITION IN WHICH IT PASSES SAID STOP MEANS. 